ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- Women entrepreneurs in Africa face a 42 billion-U.S. dollars financing gap, as structural obstacles and systemic barriers continue to limit their access to credit, digital finance, and markets, African Union (AU) Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf has said.
"Africa's women and youth constitute 75 percent of our continent (population). They are the backbone of our informal economy, our agricultural sector, and our local markets. Yet, women entrepreneurs in Africa continue to face a staggering financing gap," Youssouf addressed Africa's flagship women's empowerment-themed gathering, the second Egumeni Dialogue on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment, on Monday at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital.
He attributed the systemic barriers to constraints associated with restrictive collateral demands, low financial literacy, and a persistent digital divide. He stressed that in order to build a resilient Africa capable of withstanding climate, health, and macroeconomic shocks, "we must state clearly: women's economic inclusion is not a matter of charity. It is an economic imperative and an act of fundamental justice."
The chairperson highlighted the need to harness existing normative continental frameworks to effectively foster women's socio-economic empowerment across Africa. As part of coordinated efforts to translate these continental frameworks into tangible economic power for women and youth across the continent, Youssouf said that the AU is pushing for the success of the Women and Youth Financial and Economic Inclusion Initiative.
"Its goal is ambitious, yet entirely achievable, to unlock 100 billion U.S. dollars in capital and economic opportunities for at least 10 million African women and youth by 2030," Youssouf said.
Experts and policymakers at the high-level event emphasized that shifting focus from diagnosis to action requires dismantling systemic economic barriers that disproportionately limit the potential of African women and youth.
Dimakatso Malwela, chairperson of the Continental Network of Women's Business Associations in Africa, stressed the critical necessity of establishing a highly connected continental ecosystem to accelerate women's access to regional trade, markets, and investment opportunities.
She stressed that progress should be measured far beyond simple business ownership; rather, it should be gauged by meaningfully expanding women-owned enterprises' cross-border trading, participation in major corporate supply chains, and the transition of informal enterprises into competitive and sustainable businesses driving Africa's industrialization.
Noting that achieving this requires effort from all concerned stakeholders, Malwela called on governments to create enabling and implementable policies, financial institutions to develop solutions that respond to the realities of women-owned businesses, the private sector to open procurement and supply chain opportunities, and development and international partners to help strengthen capacity and remove structural barriers.
"Investing in African women is not only a gender imperative. It is an economic imperative, it is a trade imperative, and it is fundamental to building a resilient Africa," she said.
The three-day gathering brought together more than 250 participants, including African ministers of women and youth, heads of financial institutions and regulators, development partners, and women entrepreneurs under the theme "Building a Resilient Africa through Accelerated Women Financial and Economic Inclusion." ■